August 29, 2012

It was the first day of the fall term at most of California's 112 community colleges, and statewide budget cuts meant students were returning from summer break to face higher fees, fewer course offerings and crowded classrooms. An information booth on the Culver City campus overflowed with students hoping to add high-demand classes such as English. Read more at:http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-college-classes-20120828,0,6461667.story

August 28, 2012

Despite years of cuts in state funding, UC Berkeley is at the top of its game - ranked among the best universities in the world, glowing with research, and expanding options for undergraduates - all thanks to more private money. Berkeley's reliance on private funding to maintain its excellence raises the question of how public the campus really is, and echoes the chants of student protesters who point to "privatization" as the consequence of California's disinvestment in public education. Read more at:http://www.sfgate.com/education/article/Berkeley-private-donations-make-it-happen-3811571.php#ixzz24lyyQeDX

August 27, 2012

For more than a decade, Morris Brown College has clung to life as it struggled academically and financially in the face of growing debt and dwindling support. Now, one of the country's oldest black colleges, which at times boasted an enrollment of more than 3,000 student, is now down to about 50, and all but dead.
Morris Brown is facing foreclosure next month, after investors called $13 million worth of bonds tied to the college. An auction of assets, including the administration building, is scheduled for Sept. 4. Read more at:http://www.ajc.com/news/with-foreclosure-looming-morris-1504312.html

August 16, 2012

The past decade for the state’s higher education has seen three trends: cuts to state funding, rising tuition, and growing salaries. State higher education officials say linking salary and benefits costs to rising tuition is not so simple. There are a number of factors that affect rising tuition costs, they said, most notably the state’s minimal contribution to public higher education. New Hampshire is last in the country for state funding of higher education. Still, the state’s university system employs more than 100 people earning more than $150,000 a year, and many of those are administrative positions. Read more at:http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/971374-196/nh-higher-ed-salaries-rose-in-decade.html

August 07, 2012

This is today's reality at California State University, Sacramento: Classes are so packed and hard to come by that students have little chance of graduating within the traditional four years. Just 8 percent of first-time, degree-seeking Sacramento State students who started classes in 2007 graduated in 2011, the lowest four-year graduation rate in a decade. Sacramento State's four-year graduation rate has long been low, but it was improving before the school, in response to state funding cuts, became stingy about class offerings. Sacramento State has seen a $58 million reduction in state funding over the past five years. Read more at:http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/05/4693813/few-sacramento-state-students.html

August 06, 2012

It’s become almost a cliche: Whenever “overspending” is criticized, the ultimate culprit often is said to be “administrative overhead.”But for higher education, this is more than a cliche. According to a report from the American Council of College Trustees and Alumni, administrative spending rose at 14 of Virginia’s 15 public four-year institutions for the six years prior to the 2008-2009 academic year. The average increase in spending for adminstration: 65 percent. At 11 of those schools — including the University of Virginia — administrative spending rose at higher rate than academic spending. Read more at:http://www2.dailyprogress.com/news/2012/aug/16/cost-control-higher-ed-seems-lost-ar-2135766/#

August 01, 2012

Many universities face shaky finances because of declining state aid and weakened returns on endowments. At Harvard—and some of its Ivy League peers —the recession has lingered because of an unusually heavy dependency on their endowments for operating income. Harvard is spending again in some areas, and financial aid to students has risen substantially since 2008. But a new awareness has taken root that resources are not as bountiful as they once were. "Limitations have become much more real," said Harvard Provost Alan Garber. Read more at:http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444130304577559141673496810.html?mod=ITP_pageone_1#

July 27, 2012

This U.S. zeal for schooling has been so vigorous that it has blurred the distinction between education (the development of the mind and the thinking process) and training (the preparation for a job or career). Today, a person studying for a doctorate, a pursuit that traditionally drew those with a thirst for pure learning, may well be aiming for a career in business in the same way as a candidate for a medical degree or a master’s in business administration. Middle-class American parents have long believed that the more degrees their offspring collect, the higher they will end up on the social and economic scale. Read more at:http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-23/higher-education-needs-a-financing-overhaul.html

July 24, 2012

The finances of many of the nation's institutions of higher education are starting to wobble. If they continue to deteriorate, the fallout won't be confined to college campuses. Hundreds of schools—including some of the most prestigious institutions in the country—have tightened their belts. That is bad news not just for the schools and their students but for the communities that depend on them for jobs.This pain is already being felt in places like Pullman, Wash., home to Washington State University. Read more at:http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444330904577537452874310424.html